'Jeopardy!' EP Says They'll Announce A Permanent Host 'Very, Very Soon'

Fans are wondering when "Jeopardy!" producers will come to a decision as to who will be the next permanent host of the show after late host Alex Trebek passed away of pancreatic cancer.

The two choices are "Jeopardy!" Greatest of All Time tournament winner Ken Jennings or "The Big Bang Theory" actress Mayim Bialik.

According to Variety, a decision might be coming very, very soon.

On August 5, 2021, then-executive producer Mike Richards was announced as the new "Jeopardy!" host. However, several offensive comments about women and minorities surfaced online quickly after he was announced, and he was fired not only as "Jeopardy!" host but as executive producer as well within less than a week.

The "Blossom" child star, who had been selected to host primetime tournaments, stepped in to host the show full-time. Ken Jennings was called in to assist her, since Mayim also had commitments to her Fox sitcom, "Call Me Kat," which was recently renewed for another season. Meanwhile, Ken Jennings has stepped away from his commitments and did not return to season 3 of NBC's "The Chase" alongside "Jeopardy!" greats James Holzhauer and Brad Rutter.

With season 38 coming to an end this summer, fans have been anxiously awaiting any news as to who will become the new permanent host and successor to late host Alex Trebek. On Friday, Richards' replacement, series executive producer Michael Davies, appeared at the Daytime Emmys to take home the prize for Outstanding Game Show. The show has won the award the last three years in a row and has seven times out of ten. "Jeopardy!" has also won Outstanding Game Show at the Daytime Emmys more than any other game show in the award show's history.

Although Davies called Richards' firing "the awkward months" for the game show, he admitted that it "showed the power of our audience and how passionately our fans care about the program, which is just so important."

Davies named several super champions from this season, including Matt Amodio, Amy Schneider, Mattea Roach, and Ryan Long, who all made it to the "Jeopardy!" Hall of Fame, which has now been renamed the Leaderboard of Legends.

Ken Jennings still sits atop the leaderboard with most games won. In 2004, he set a seemingly insurmountable win streak of 74 games won in a row. The second-place streak was set in January 2022 by Amy Schneider, who won 40 games in a row. Third place belongs to Matt Amodio, who won 38 games shortly before Amy's win streak started.

They will all face off again in the upcoming Tournament of Champions later this year. Although a host hasn't been announced for the tournament, which is believed to air in November, it's possible that the official new host of the show will host the upcoming Tournament of Champions as well.

Davies said, “We hope to have a hosting announcement very, very soon.”

“But with all of our plans for Jeopardy!—which is more Jeopardy!, not less, more versions—we’re going to need multiple hosts to represent the entire audience, to represent the entire country, in order to take this franchise forward,” he added.

Judging by his comments, it seems possible that they might announce that both Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik will stay on as permanent hosts for the foreseeable future. Mayim has been hosting most of the tournaments so far - including 2021's Professor's Tournament and the 2022 National College Championship on primetime.

There is also the upcoming "Celebrity Jeopardy!" game show that is coming soon. No host has not been attached to the project just yet, but considering that she has hosted the previous tournaments, many are suspecting that Mayim Bialik will host this new show as well.

That being said, it's possible that "Jeopardy!" producers could tap a fresh face to host the new show, such as 2021's Tournament of Champions host and "Jeopardy!" great Buzzy Cohen. Many fans were also disappointed that "Reading Rainbow" host LeVar Burton didn't seem to get a fair shake during his guest audition.

At this point, it may not be a question of who will be the next "Jeopardy!" host, but how many will there be.